Improved shoe-lacing



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LEONARD A. SPRAGUE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

IMPRovEo SHOE-meme.

Specication forming part of Letters Patent No. 51,@28, dated January 2, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known `that I, LEONARD A. SPRAGUE, of New York, in the county and State of New. York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shoe-Lacing; and I hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a section, and Fig.2 a plan View, of my improvement.

This invention relates to that class of lacin g-eyes vfor which Letters Patent of the' United States were issued on the 6th day of January, '1863, to Jacob Autemeith; and -it consists in a method of construction, and applying the same, whereby great economy of cost in the .manufact-ure is attained, while admitting of machinery, suchas are well known to 1nanu` fact'urers of this class -ot' hardware articles. One end ofthe wire is bent into a ring which is flattened and milled so as to give its upper face the appearance of anornamented washer, a. The other end, b, of the wire is bent downward at right angles, the bent portion being yof a length to exceed the thicknessvof the materia'l to which the eye is to be attached and that of the washer before described by so much as will be necessary to forni a rivet to clinch the eye, as will be hereinafter more fully explained. The wire whose ends are thus formed into -a washer and clinchin g-pin is doubled up-that is, bent into a loop or lacing-eye, c, of requisite curvature or form. These lacing-eyes are made for attachment to, over, and around the edges of the article to be laced, as shown in the drawings. For instance, on shoes they are arranged in aline parallel with the edge' of the laced portion,

each eye being fastened to the leather or material on a line back of the edge, and projecting therefrom to alternate with those from the opposite side. The end binay be sharp enough to pierce its own hole into the material when about .being fastened, thus .dispensing with tools for and labor of previously piercing the material for the reception of the lacingeye.

To secure' thev eye in place I use a tool or clinching device which encompasses and holds theeyelet with the ends distended. With this tool the eyelet is-brought and adjusted in its position, when, by operating the tool, (either by hand or otherwise,) the end b is forced through both the material and the washer and compressed.v This compression of the point is eiected by a die, which gives it the form of a head which is calculated to' snugly fit and till the central opening in the washer.

From the foregoing it will be seen that in point of view of construction of the eyelet proper it may be made ascheaply and expeditiously, or nearly so, as the lordinary eyes and hooks of ladies garments, while to attach the same no additional piece or pieces are required, nor the material pierced or .perforated by holes which would at all affect its strength or resistance.

rIhis invention, althoughrelating more particularly to closed lacing-eyes, it willbe under- .stood that with but obvious modifications it may be applied to open hooks and eyes, both for lacing and hooking purposes.

Having thus'described my said invention, I 

